Liliana's Office, Thursday

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana had woken up this morning and said four lies before even getting out of bed, just to make sure the awful honesty of the day before was well and truly over with. Though, she had to admit that yesterday hadn't been completely terrible, she had learned pazaak from Atton and they'd had an enjoyable time playing the game and eventually trying to out-cheat one another in a lovely manner that didn't involve honesty - or really talking - at all.

...Granted, she had asked him once or twice what cards he had, just to see if the honesty day would make him slip up and tell her, but that fit nicely under the umbrella header of cheating. Besides, he'd seemed to respect the hustle, as she'd respected the slippery way he'd dodged away from answering.

She didn't have a pazaak deck - yet - but she did have several decks of her own to play with. Currently she was playing solitaire and wondering...had Ignis ever learned to play the game she'd learned as Castellan, but seemed to be called Durak here on Earth?

And, regardless of the answer, did she really think they'd get to playing a few hands in her office?

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[chef_chocobro]

And, lo, at a time she no doubt, by now, had come to expect, there was a knock at Liliana's office door, an alert rather than a request, because it then opened immediately afterward to admit Ignis into the room, bearing food likely to be forgotten for some time and a soft, pleased smile. The lack of glasses and the lock of the door, at this point, should generally be taken for granted, though instead of his usual seeking question of her name, he gave a more direct "Hello, Liliana" before taking the briefest of moments to access, before heading toward the desk.

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana was clearly too spoiled for her own good, having that kind of lunch made for her, only to ignore it.

"Hello, Ignis," she said, a slight, appreciative smile on her face for the way his mouth said her name. Even though he hadn't gone looking for her, she rose to greet him anyway, her solitaire game immediately forgotten - albeit with her head cocked slightly to the side in curiosity for this change to expected behaviors.

[chef_chocobro]

If anything, making his way to set down the food first and foremost not only prevented any potential for tumbled-over foods, but it also freed up both of Ignis' hands so that when he did meet Liliana, he could greet her with exactly the sort of kiss that would make good use out of that freedom, sliding along her waist and up her back and pulling her close and clearly intent to stay that way for quite some time.

[deathsmajesty]

And who was Liliana to argue with such an intention?

She kissed him back, slow and leisurely, almost exploratory, as if this weren't well-traveled ground by now. But then, perhaps kisses were like chess partners, where there was a great deal to be said about the joy of discovery with someone new, but even more for the deeper satisfaction of continuing to find excitement with your established partner.

"Mmmm," she murmured, when the kiss slowly came to a close. "What a thorough greeting indeed. Your way of saying you missed me, darling?"

[chef_chocobro]

"Actions do speak louder than words," Ignis noted, with a small, warm smile, and the hand at the small of her back seemingly curling against it as if to hold on to something lost in the parting of their lips. "How has the morning been treating you, my dear?"

Perhaps just a little bit of extra softness in his voice, there, at the end? Think nothing of it.

[deathsmajesty]

"Better now, which is a high bar considering you know how I enjoy teaching," she said, her own hands busy coming up to cup his face, thumbs skimming over high, aristocratic cheekbones. That softness she was thinking nothing of still made her chest ache. Probably a symptom of hunger that she was ignoring as thoroughly as their lunch. "And you? A blissful morning, graced by kitchen and coffee?"

[chef_chocobro]

Just so long as that hunger didn't lead to any tell-tale stomach rumbles; they both knew how he couldn't abide by such siren calls. But in its current silent state, he could enjoy freedom from such duties, and especially enjoy the brush of her thumb against his cheek, unable to help himself from once again turning his head just that slight bit to catch her hand with a kiss, as well.

"There are truly only a few better ways to spend a morning than that," he said, "but, since none of those were readily available, I did make the most of it. And brought you lunch, of course."

[deathsmajesty]

"Of course," Liliana agreed. "And I'm sure we'll get around to eating it."

You know. Eventually.

She gave a low chuckle, leaning further against him, letting him take her weight, hand slipping behind his head as her arms twined over his shoulders. "Tell me about one of those better ways," she purred. "Perhaps we can make it happen tomorrow morning instead."

The garden party didn't start until later, they could easily spend the morning doing exactly as he envisioned in his mind's eye, which remained as sharp as ever.

...so long as he didn't take this opportunity to be a brat, which she wouldn't put past him, either.

[chef_chocobro]

There were reasons Ignis' menu definitely tended to lean more toward things that did well at room temperature for a considerable amount of time on Thursdays, yes.

"Mmm," and there was something in that hum that seemed to suggest that there was a temptation to lean into that brattiness (and there would certainly be comments made in class later that would make him wish he had), but he had spent the morning not only with cooking and coffee, but an awful lot of thoughts that left him swaying in a far more sincere direction, especially when that sincerity did offer much more preferable scenarios than brattiness ever could.

"You'll join me, then?" he asked, the hand that was high on her back between her shoulderblades lifting to fiddle with the length of her hair. "Downstairs, while I make breakfast?"

His smile was then soft and subtle, and so was the kiss her gave her.

"It can be a late breakfast."

They could hash out the details of what, exactly, would constitute as 'late' later.

[deathsmajesty]

"Yes," she said simply, sincerely. Because sometimes it was time for games--

"...Will you agree that tomorrow is one of those days where you indulge me by wearing your pajama pants for awhile instead of getting fully dressed?"

--and sometimes it was time for different games.

[chef_chocobro]

Ignis' first impulse, of course, was to open his mouth on the edge of a protest, but he stopped himself, pulled it back, reconsidered with a lift of his chin.

"Yes," he agreed, "but I am still doing my hair."

[deathsmajesty]

"Of course," Liliana said immediately, as if she couldn't fathom any other possibility. She stroked over his chin with a cool finger. "Wake me up early enough in that way I like, and I'll shave you after our shower."

Perched on the counter, him between her knees, the soft kiss of the razor over his skin, wielded with a care and precision that he likely didn't let himself think too closely about where it came from...

[chef_chocobro]

Perish the notion. Clearly, such a deft hand with a blade was practically a necessity for an aspiring cleric.

However, keeping those skills honed and sharpened in the long interim since then....well, that was just smart, now, wasn't it?

His chin lifted a marginal bit more, as did the corner of his lips. "I believe," he stated, "I find these terms quite acceptable."

[deathsmajesty]

That was, in fact, where she'd learned!

"You still haven't told me the rest of it, though I suppose, in a show of good faith, I can trust you to reveal it to me as we go tomorrow." She moved in to conquer that newly-vulnerable domain with teeth. "And how do you wish to seal this arrangement?" she asked before sinking her teeth delicately into the skin of his throat.